Athletics: Qatar's Barshim pulls out of Asian meet

Athletics: Qatar's Barshim pulls out of Asian meet

World number one high jumper Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar withdrew from the Asian athletics championships on Tuesday, robbing the already depleted event of its star attraction.

The 22-year-old was expected to dominate headlines during the five-day meet which opens in Pune on Wednesday after becoming the first high jumper since 2000 to clear 2.40 metres outdoors.

Barshim, who achieved the feat at the Prefontaine Classic Diamond League meeting in June, pulled out due to a back injury, according to the Qatar Athletics Federation.

Also missing from the Asian meet, which gives the gold medallists direct entry to the world championships in Moscow in August, is Japanese teenage sprint sensation Yoshihide Kiryu.

Kiryu, 17, clocked a junior world record equalling time of 10.01 seconds in the 100m in April, but the record was not validated because the equipment used for measuring wind speed was not up to international standards.